Our Last game: 11/4/14 A glorious victory for the Blazerland against the monarchist minions of King James. Our comrades gleefully met their tactical and strategic objectives while denying the opposition the same, due to robust defensive principles and superior firepower. Damian Lillard located, closed with and destroyed the opponent, earning the Efficiency Medal for the game with 27 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds on 13 shots (including 10-for-10 from the free throw line) and the stout defenders of the Moda held fast to win 101-82.
Their Last game: Chandler Parsons scored a season-high 29 on Monday, Dirk Nowitzki added 27 and they combined to sink 8 of 9 from 3-point range as Dallas held off the Celtics 118-113 after leading by as many as 30 points.
DAL 3-1 111.8ppg offense 105.0ppg defense 3-game winning streak
POR 2-2 97.8ppg offense 92.3ppg defense, 1-game winning streak
Changes to their roster:
Mavs’ MoneyBall said:
Before free agency started, Dallas traded Jose Calderon, Shane Larkin, Samuel Dalembert, and 2 second round draft picks for the expiring contract of returning champion and Dallas hero, Tyson Chandler, and a noted fan of food, Raymond Felton.
From there, after failing to draw the interest of any superstar free agents, Dallas very quickly moved on to its plan B. The Mavs immediately re-signed Dirk to a 3 year, $28 million dollar contract that is probably the best for-value contract in the league.
Dallas then did something ballsy: they leveled a maximum-level offer sheet to Rockets restricted free agent Chandler Parsons in an attempt to pry him away from Houston, who wanted to keep their cap sheet clean in an attempt to sign Chris Bosh.
Injury Updates:
Raymond Felton PG - Nov 5: Out. Al-Farouq Aminu SF - Nov 4: Day-To-Day.
Portland
Joel Freeland C - Nov 5: Day-To-Day
Matchups:
PG: Damian Lillard v. Jameer Nelson. Should be easy picking for Damian tonight, following up his 27pt performance Tuesday. Nelson isn't doing much on offense in his 26mpg, but he's still a dangerous 44% (37% for career) shooter from deep, and will punish any lapses on that end.
SG: Wesley Matthews v. Monta Ellis. Monta, while having quick hands, is not known for his defensive studliness. Wes has gotten off to a great shooting start and averaging over 19ppg. Monta shouldn't do well with having to chase Wes around, but can easily go off and get his if the defense isn't disciplined.
SF: Nicolas Batum v. Chandler Parsons. Parsons is having himself a year so far, averaging 19ppg on 50% shooting. Able to get his shot off from just about anywhere, it'll be tough for either of the wings to cheat off of their man to help on Dirk.
PF: LaMarcus Aldridge v. Dirk Nowitzki. The Master and the Apprentice. LMA holds the edge in athleticism and volume of shots, but not many hold a candle to Dirk's shooting efficiency among big men. He can get his rainbow fadeaway off against anyone, anytime, and it's usually a matter of hoping he's having an off night. Then again, if LMA's going into the paint, it'll be a long night for Dirk. He and Chandler will thank the heavens every time LMA lets him off the hook by shooting a jumper.
C: Robin Lopez v. Tyson Chandler. Tyson's still a very good defender, and if Dame persists in taking weak stuff into the paint Tyson may have 7 or 8 blocks. But if DAL puts Chandler on LMA and Dirk on Lopez, you might see the Blazers feed a steady diet of Sideshow Rob and see a similar line to the 8-11, 19 pts that CLE got jammed into their grill.
Give-a-Rip (City) Factor—a.k.a. why you should watch: Another early-season matchup at home versus a western conference playoff contender. A team that put up 118 last game, including 40 in the first quarter, against a Blazers team that needs to improve earlier in games. Portland hasn’t played a complete game yet. Can the Blazers offense overcome an quick start by a good offensive team? Can the D stay Top-5 stout?
Current Power Rankings:
RipCityTwo (PtldPlatypus): (5) Tyson Chandler is going to be a busy, busy man protecting the rim in Dallas. I forsee many 120-115 games in their future.
ESPN: (3) Even if you think they should have won in San Antonio, it's hard to quibble too much with the Mavs' start. Dirk and Monta have it going already, Tyson Chandler looks right back at home, Dallas manufactured a nice win in New Orleans ... and please tell me you've seen the new Run DMC video.
Grantland: (Western Bloodbath) They lose some shooting and beardy zest with Jose Calderon gone, and DeJuan Blair and Shawn Marion were exactly the sort of strange square pegs who also fit the rightly shaped holes. But Brandan Wright and his giant arms are still here, and Carlisle will find cool stuff for Jae Crowder (looking beastly in preseason), Al-Farouq Aminu, and maybe even Greg Smith. Tyson Chandler’s snarling dunk celebrations are the best, and he has a nice two-way synergy with Dirk.
NBA.com (7) Dirk Nowitzki's mid-range game is in mid-season form. He shot 20-for-28 from between the paint and the 3-point line last week. Tyson Chandler's defensive impact has yet to be really felt, but Chandler Parsons recovered from his poor showing in San Antonio to score 41 points against the Jazz and Pelicans, while the Mavs' bench additions made impacts as well.
Link to Grandpa Blaze's Prediction Game
link to MediocreMan's Over/Under game
Links to other team’s site(s):
Mavericks’ Official Site
Mavericks Home (Fan Site)
Mavs’ Moneyball
Final Thoughts: Mavericks lead the lead in points per game, and the Blazers are 4th-best in preventing that. Mavericks = not good on offense. Blazers can be. I think they are tonight.
Blazers 120
DAL 110
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BLAZERS' GAME NOTES 
